Chapter 221: Hysterical

The moment that kiss landed, time seemed to stretch quietly.

Ansu felt a slight, cool softness on his cheek. It was very light, yet like a pebble tossed into a still lake, it sent out invisible ripples.

After the kiss, Freya held him even tighter.

She used almost all her strength to hug Ansu's waist, burying her burning face deep into his chest as if trying to hide in the safest corner of the world.

"Lord Ansu..."

A wet chill seeped into his clothes, accompanied by stifled, fragmented sobs.

She was crying silently.

Ansu froze, then instinctively raised his hand, somewhat awkwardly patting her thin back.

"It's okay..." he said in a low voice, as if coaxing a little girl, "it's all over now."

A belated pang of guilt flickered through his heart. Ansu suddenly realized that for a long time, he seemed to have... hardly ever cared about the little Holy Maiden's psychological state.

He had always assumed she was gentle yet strong, capable of adjusting everything herself.

So this was the first time he had seen her broken like this.

However...

Ansu looked down at the pink-haired girl nestled quietly against him. Her cheeks were still stained with tears, but her breathing was gradually stabilizing.

At least... after the little Holy Maiden turned into her blackened state, she seemed fairly safe?

...

Freya felt an unprecedented sense of peace in her heart. Her pale face once again showed a long-lost brightness and happiness.

If this really was a dream... she no longer knew if it was a nightmare or a beautiful dream.

"Lord Ansu..."

"Hmm?"

"You're so kind," she whispered, her voice filled with total dependence, her cheek unconsciously rubbing against his chest.

Ansu, however, sighed softly.

Thinking of her near-breakdown just now... or rather, the extreme tendencies she might possess in reality, he suddenly felt the weight of responsibility on his shoulders become very heavy.

He lowered his head, about to say something more.

A cold voice suddenly rang out, breaking the brief silence in the hall.

"What are you two doing?"

Ansu and Freya looked up simultaneously.

Celia's figure had appeared at the hall entrance at some point, still seemingly surrounded by the scent of gunpowder and blood she had brought back from outside the city.

At this moment, those dark red eyes were fixed unblinkingly on the two embracing figures...

"Uh... Celia." Ansu felt both awkward and helpless... thinking to himself, why was this simulation time passing so slowly?

This was bad.

A true field of carnage.

The kind where people might actually die...

"The demon mercenaries outside... have you finished negotiating with them?" Ansu slowly released his grip and instinctively moved a bit to the side.

"The negotiations are over," Celia squeezed the words through her teeth. "I've killed all the demon messengers..."

She was already bursting with anger because of those arrogant demons who didn't know their place, and then she returned to see this scene.

Freya.

Her dark red eyes snapped toward the girl who was still clinging to Ansu, her killing intent almost becoming physical.

However, Freya did not let go; instead, she gripped the hem of Ansu's clothes even tighter.

She raised her pale gold eyes and met that icy gaze from the doorway without a hint of fear.

"Do you have a death wish?" Celia sneered, a terrifying aura of black filth beginning to radiate from her. "What did you say that day? You said you wanted nothing, that you only wanted to help your Lord Ansu, to help his cause... Freya, is this your 'help'?"

Freya chuckled, returning an equally cold stare. "Because I have discovered the root and origin of all tragedy..."

Celia narrowed her eyes gloomily.

"It's you, the witch!" Even though Ansu tried to pull her back several times, Freya still spoke out. Every sentence felt incredibly satisfying as she poured out all the resentment that had built up because of Celia. "If it weren't for you, everything would have returned to normal! You should never have come near Ansu from the very beginning! If I could... I would truly love to kill you!"

"With just you?" Celia mocked gloomily, as if she had heard the world's funniest joke.

Freya's gaze grew even more hateful.

Whenever she thought of this witch being by his side, she felt heartbroken that Lord Ansu would be deluded, tainted by darkness, and twisted into abandoning his humanity...

It shouldn't have been like this.

In those ancient legends and countless stories, the Chosen One and the Holy Maiden were the destined protagonists. Lord Ansu was supposed to be hers...

This was an encounter written by fate, a trajectory already determined in the cycle of reincarnation, but this witch! She had ruined everything!!

"Uh... both of you, calm down and listen to me..."

Caught between two increasingly twisted and frenzied auras, Ansu felt his scalp tingle, and every second felt like a year...

There were less than ten minutes left... why was time moving so slowly?

He was truly out of options...

"There's nothing to say. As long as she dies, everything will be fine!" Celia's dark red pupils constricted as a writhing black flame ignited in her palm. Her figure lunged forward. "Die!"

"I've had enough! I've had enough of you, witch! Die!!" Freya's tone grew increasingly sharp, a hysterical light burning in her golden eyes.

Since it was fake! Since all of this was nothing more than a dream... then she would be as reckless as she pleased!

"Lord Ansu! Please forgive me! In my dream, I want to take charge for once!"

Die! Die!!

She laughed frantically, suddenly raising the ancient holy seal she had been clutching to her chest—

Not for defense, but with a madness intent on mutual destruction.

In the next second.

A pure white holy light, so brilliant it was blinding, acted like a spear of judgment falling from the heavens, instantly piercing through the thick aura of darkness in the hall.

【God-Descent】

Buzz—

The world went silent.

...

In a bright room, Ansu suddenly opened his eyes.

The oppression and madness of the castle hall, along with the final clash of holy light and magic that threatened to annihilate everything, had all vanished.

In their place were the familiar walls and desk of his bedroom, and the quiet night outside the window.

Ansu breathed a silent sigh of relief.

He was finally back...

He had returned to the night when the purification rune had just been successfully developed and he had received intelligence about the 'Magic Prohibition Decree'. At this moment, in the magic lab on the same floor, the elders had not yet dispersed, and waves of discussion with varying emotions could be heard.

Although this 【Simulation 100 Hours】 had basically achieved all goals and even provided several unexpected gains.

However, that terrifying field of carnage in the final ten minutes... still left him with lingering fears.

Let's not have that happen again; it wasn't fun at all...

The faint light screen of the 【System Prompt】 appeared at the right time, interrupting his scattered thoughts.

【Reality】

【Radiant Calendar 625, July 13, 23:06】

【Rating: A】

【Comment: To think you could even turn the gentle and kind little Holy Maiden into a yandere? You, host...】

【You have obtained a large amount of intelligence in this round of simulation, successfully learning the underlying interests driving the 'Magic Prohibition Decree', and identifying the core suspect responsible for the 'Novalon Explosion', as well as the personnel list for the Squirrel Party and the demon resistance army in Novalon City.】

【Time is pressing; please use the key intelligence as soon as possible to reverse the reality crisis.】

【PS: Finally, it is necessary to remind the host.】

【Even if Freya's blackened state is not as hazardous as that of the World Ending Witch, its potential negative impact on world stability still deserves high attention. To maintain world peace and stability, please take appropriate measures actively...】

【The system can still provide subsequent simulation deductions. Would you like to preview the playback immediately?】